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"The Chinese manned space program has announced its plan on 20 future space voyages," wrote Zhou Erjie of the official Xinhua News Agency. "China also plans to establish its own space lab around 2016 and assemble a 60-ton manned space station around 2020, when the current International Space Station is estimated to likely retire."

Experts say the upcoming launch will place China close to putting a space station in orbit. Such a station, a la ISS, will enable China to conduct scientific and military research.

Experts say the Chinese could use the station to conduct biological, genetic and energy research. At the same time, they could also use it as a platform to spy on potential adversaries or to develop lasers capable of blinding or disabling other satellites.

The Chinese space program is largely run by government-owned enterprises or military-affiliated groups. Many of the pilots, scientists and engineers are active or demobilized army officers.

China promises to never use space research for military purposes. "A rapidly developing space industry does not mean China has renounced its commitment to peace," says Qi Faren, the chief designer of the Shenzhou spaceship series. "All China is doing is to pursue a peaceful development of the space industry as planned."

Still, experts say, the U.S. remains concerned about Chinese space activities. "Over 95% of space technology is dual use, meaning of value to both civil and military communities," says Joan Johnson-Freese of the U.S. War College. "While the U.S. is still far ahead of China technically, China has something critical that the U.S. does not—the political will to push forward."

If the trajectory remains unchanged, experts say, China's space activities may well surpass those of Russia and the European Space Agency within a decade or so. That will position China just next to the U.S. as a dominant space power.